It was only a matter of time before scientists found a way to recycle the 750 000 tonnes of crustacean shells which are disposed of in the EU every year.

Chemistry - Materials Science

May 29, 2013 5 / 5 (2) 0

Semiconducting polymers are an unruly bunch, but University of Michigan engineers have developed a new method for getting them in line that could pave the way for cheaper, greener, "paint-on" plastic electronics.

Nanotechnology - Nanomaterials

Mar 24, 2013 4.7 / 5 (6) 5 |

Scientists studying an enzyme that naturally produces alkanes—long carbon-chain molecules that could be a direct replacement for the hydrocarbons in gasoline—have figured out why the natural reaction ...

Chemistry - Biochemistry

Feb 04, 2013 5 / 5 (7) 0 |

(Phys.org)—Multiple RNA sequences can code for the same amino acid, but differences in their respective "optimality" slow or accelerate protein translation. Stanford biologists find optimal and non-optimal ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

Jan 31, 2013 5 / 5 (5) 0 |

Biomembranes consist of a mosaic of individual, densely packed lipid molecules. These molecules are formed inside the cells. But how do these building blocks move to the correct part of the membrane? Researchers ...

Chemistry - Biochemistry

Jan 30, 2013 5 / 5 (1) 0

Certain plants and animals protect themselves against temperatures below freezing with antifreeze proteins. How the larva of the beetle Dendroides canadensis manages to withstand temperatures down to -30 ...

Chemistry - Materials Science

Jan 02, 2013 5 / 5 (9) 0 |

The immune system generates antibodies to mark threats that need to be eliminated, and these protein complexes bind their targets with remarkable strength and selectivity. Scientists have learned how to generate ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

Jan 02, 2013 5 / 5 (2) 0

At crucial points in the metabolism of all organisms, a protein with the unwieldy name of Translation Elongation Factor P (EF-P, for short) takes center stage. What it actually does during protein synthesis has only now been ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

Dec 14, 2012 5 / 5 (2) 0 |

The body's cell machinery often attaches sugar chains onto proteins to create molecules that play a crucial role in everything from protective immunity to structural stability. However, distinguishing between ...

Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry

Nov 30, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 0

(Phys.org)—By following certain rules, scientists can prepare architectural plans for building ideal protein molecules not found in the real world. Based on these computer renditions, previously non-existent ...

Chemistry - Biochemistry

Nov 29, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 0 |

"You look at the material world and see objects and how you can use them. I look at the material world and see a fascinating hidden life which is within our control, if we can only understand how it works," ...

Chemistry - Polymers

Nov 16, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 0

(Phys.org)—Researchers in the group of Centennial Professor of Chemistry, Samuel Danishefsky, have synthesized what is arguably the largest and most complex biological molecule ever assembled by the methods ...

Chemistry - Biochemistry

Nov 12, 2012 5 / 5 (2) 0 |

Paper is one of the surfaces most commonly tested for fingerprints in forensics. Unfortunately, it is particularly difficult to make fingerprints on paper visible. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, Israel ...

Nanotechnology - Nanomaterials

Nov 05, 2012 not rated yet 0 |

Researchers in Japan have developed a technique which allows them to control and target drug delivery to specific sites of the body at specific times, thus reducing side effects and improving treatment dramatically. ...

Nanotechnology - Bio & Medicine

Nov 02, 2012 not rated yet 0

(Phys.org)—The detection of specific DNA sequences is central to the identification of disease-causing pathogens and genetic diseases, as well as other activities. But current detection technologies require ...

Chemistry - Biochemistry

Oct 02, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 0